


Every Rose Has Its Thorns

by TheRedLotusFlower88



Category: Persona 5
Genre: Internal Suffering, Light Angst, Like the hanahaki disease but with thorns, M/M, Mild Blood, Not Actually Unrequited Love, Witch Curses, Witchcraft, so I guess that means it's a hanahaki au isn't it?
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-04-17
Updated: 2018-05-01
Packaged: 2019-04-24 01:25:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 5,542
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14345061
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheRedLotusFlower88/pseuds/TheRedLotusFlower88
Summary: "Do not think you're getting off easy, Mr. Skull," She said with a small grin on her face. A grin that was very unpleasant to look at, that sent shivers up Ryuji's spine, and dread pooling into his stomach. Suddenly, he realizes that this situation isn't very good. "For every day you spend keeping your secret inside you, is a day the thorns get bigger, tighter, around your heart."No,  this isn't very good at all.





	1. Chapter 1

He had seen the attack coming before it could land a hit.

They, being Ryuji, Akira, Ann, Yusuke, and Morgana, had been in the middle of battle with a Shadow in a form of a witch. Despite her small size, it became painfully clear that she was very powerful, as she had been able to knock out Ann twice (twice, because Akira had healed her the first time), had Yusuke under her spell once, and even used some of sort magik that messed with Futaba's readings. The witch herself seemed to enjoy the battle more than the Phantom Thieves, with her giggles and taunting laughter echoing around them whenever they had manage to get a hit in. It was incredibly annoying, as well as frustrating, because, in the eyes of Ryuji, she wasn't taking the battle seriously.

 _Then again, she's a shadow, I guess she wouldn't._ He thought as Yusuke, once again, used his ice attack against her, causing her to giggle.

It would appear that the witch was more prone to heavy attacks than elemental, but even so, the witch did nothing that would imply she was weaker than whatever they had used before.

"Come _on_ , there's gotta be something." Ryuji growled out, narrowing his eyes.

"Stay calm, Skull. Getting angry at a time like this won't do any good." He heard Yusuke say. He would've agreed, had the little monster not interrupt him and let out another giggle.

"This is getting _soo_ boring. I would've thought the Phantom Thieves were better than this," She said, eyeing the group one by one before looking over at their leader. Then her eyes gleamed. "I know! Let's spice things up for real, huh?" Suddenly, the witch starting to make something her hands, a form of black and purple clouds appearing. Ryuji felt something prickling at his neck, a sense of dread washing over him. "This time, your life is at stake. So you better be prepared," That's when the witch looked back at Akira, a smirk forming on her face. "Catch!"

Before anyone could say anything, she had thrown the cloud towards the black-haired teen, whose eyes went wide. Seeing how he was not moving, Ryuji, who had been the closest, immediately pushed him to the side, taking the hit. Pain race up and down Ryuji's body, causing him to scream, before fainting to the ground.

"SKULL!"

Akira raced towards the fallen comrade, quickly placing him in his lap and checking his vital signs.

"Whoops," The witch giggled. "Wrong one."

"What did you do to him?" Yusuke asked, turning around to the Shadow-witch. Said witch tilted her head.

"That's for me to know, and for you to find out....that is, IF he lets you." She said, grinning. She had disappeared as soon as she saw Ann ready to attack her, just barely missing the flames. Soon the rest of the Thieves turned to Akira. 

"Is he okay?" Ann asked, concern shining in her eyes.

"Nothing seems out of the ordinary." Futaba said, looking at her scanner. Carrying Ryuji bridal style, Akira turned to the group, grey eyes made out of steel.

"I think it's time to head home." He said. No one argued.

* * *

Ryuji felt a groan slip from his lips as a pounding headache started to form, right in the front mostly.

 _Are you alright, Kid?_ He heard Captain Kidd asked.

 _I've been better,_ Ryuji answered. _What the heck happen? Why do I feel like crap?_

 _You had taken a blow meant for your leader during the Mementos run, facing off with a witch shadow._ Captain Kidd said. At the mention of the shadow, memories started to flow back to him, and his eyes shot open, a gasp following, as he sat up on a....bed? The heck?

Before Ryuji could ponder this further, nausea quickly caught up to him and before he knew it, he was leaning over the bed ( _Akira's bed_ he noted), vomiting his guts out.

"Gross," He heard someone, Morgana, said. "What nice way to thank someone for letting you stay with them."

"Shut up, cat." Ryuji groaned out, just as he heard footsteps coming up the attic and saw Akira with a bucket and a towel.

"I figured you were going to do that." He said, and instantly, Ryuji felt guilty.

"Sorry man."

Akira just shrugged his shoulders before getting on his knees and began cleaning up the mess. Feeling even worse at the fact that Akira was basically babying him, Ryuji started to move.

"Let me help." He said, but was stopped when Akira shook his head.

"It's fine. You're probably not in the mood for cleaning anyway," As soon as he was done, Akira looked up at the blond, concern in his eyes. "How you feeling?"

Ryuji shrugged his shoulders and couldn't help but curl up even further into Akira's bed. It was so warm and comfy, much better than the couch, he thought. Then again, how many nights has Akira slept in this same bed? Surely, it'll be enough to capture the heat of his body.

Ryuji could feel his face heating up at the thought, but nearly wince when he felt something sharp tugged against his heart. _What the?_

"Ryuji?" Ryuji blinked and looked over at Akira, who had moved to the bed, frowning at the blond. Realizing he was still waiting for an answer, Ryuji faked a cough, trying to hide his blushing cheeks. It's only been a few months since he's discovered his feelings towards Akira, and he wasn't exactly sure if he's doing a good job hiding it. _If for nothing else,_ Ryuji thought. _Do it because Akira has a crush on Ann._

"'M a little woozy, but I think I'll be alright." He said. Akira nodded.

"I've called your mom and told her you'll be staying over tonight, if that's okay." He said. Ryuji grinned.

"Yeah man, it'll be like a sleepover, but for guys, you know!" Ryuji turned to the window. "What time is it anyway?"

"8, and you two need to go to bed! You have school tomorrow!" Morgana said, glaring at the two teens. Ryuji nearly stuck his tongue out at the cat before he yawned. Seeing this, Akira quickly complied.

"I have some extra pajamas for you." He said, holding out the neatly folded clothes. Ryuji grinned once more before he took the clothes, shivering when he felt the fingertips of Akira, but then wincing once more when he felt pains in his chest again.

"I'll be right back." He said, getting up and walking downstairs to the bathroom. When he reached the bathroom and closed the door behind him, however, everything inside him started to tense as pain erupted in his chest. It was enough to have him bending at the knees, clutching at his chest as the pain seemingly spread all over, but mostly from his heart. His hands started to shake, causing him to drop the clothes, just as his legs gave out, and Ryuji could feel a cough tickling at the back of his throat. Thinking nothing of it, he let himself cough, and was surprise to see something wet shoot out from his mouth, but even more so horrified when he saw what it was.

Blood. 

 


	2. Chapter 2

Ryuji stared at the splatter on the ground, eyes wide, completely frozen by the sight. This was soon changed when he felt his body started to shake, his hands clenching and unclenching, slowly rocking himself like he was in a trance, until a violent shake caused him to tense up and lean over to spat out more blood.

 _Wh....what?_ He thought, horrified as he stared at the two spots of blood. _When did I....? How did this....? Was it the witch?_ He slowly backed away from the spots, until his rear reached the ball of his feet, still looking dazed and a bit troubled. _That...that shouldn't be possible, right? I'm sure Mona or Akira healed me before we left the Mementos. So why?_ He looked back at the spot, and he felt something twist inside him. _Why does her affect still work?_

Shaking his head, Ryuji sighed. _Calm down, Sakamoto. Maybe it's not as bad as you think! Just a one time thing? I'm sure it'll go away._ Getting up from the floor, Ryuji picked up his fallen clothes and looked into the mirror.

"What do you think, Kidd?" He asked.

 _It's possible that the shadow's attack carried out in the real word,_ He heard his persona say. _Maybe a side affect? I don't really feel much of anything if it's affectin' you._

"Maybe..." He muttered. Still, he didn't think it was enough to get Akira and the others involved. If it really is a side affect like Kidd thinks it might be, then all of this should go away soon and no one would be the wiser. Feeling a bit confident at this logic, Ryuji started to smile and gone back to doing what he was doing before - getting ready to bed. Changing didn't take long, and the blond began walking upstairs where two of his friends were waiting for him.

"Finally, what took you so long? Did you somehow get lost in the bathroom?" Morgana asked, and Ryuji glared at him.

"No, I- just shut up!" He said, folding his arms. Akira just shook his head before looking over at Ryuji.

"Bed's ready." Ryuji blinked in surprise.

"Dude, no way am I sleeping on your bed! I know I did it before, but that's because I didn't have a choice in the matter! Heck, I'm still wonderin' why you just didn't stick me on the couch." He said, ignoring Morgana's mutter _thinking the same thing._ Akira shook his head.

"Nonsense. You're a guest, but you're also my friend. I want you to be comfortable too." He said. It was at this moment Ryuji could feel himself falling in love with Akira all over again, but was stopped when he felt pain in the center of his chest. It was as if the pain was slowly growing, never really stopping, and though Ryuji could feel it everywhere, he mostly felt it near his heart. It was very, very painful, despite the small sensation of being pricked; almost as if his entire body was on fire. It took everything in him not to grabbed his chest as he had done so previously in the bathroom. _It'll stop,_ Ryuji thought to himself. _It has to...._

"Aww, don't worry about it! I'll be fine on the couch!" When Akira didn't say anything, only giving him a look, Ryuji realized two things at this point.

One, Akira was very determined when it came to his teammates' safety and comfort - at least, he was when it came to Ryuji.

Two, he was so over his head with his newfound crush.

Because, even though Ryuji knows Akira is handsome, and often is reminded of it during certain things such as in the Mementos when he's dressed as the Joker, Akira's beauty just keeps hitting him like a runaway speed truck.

Sitting on the bed with his back turned to the window, glowing in the moonlight that peaked through, messy black hair falling onto his face, and his beautiful grey eyes that flickered between gentle and hard (and Ryuji tries not to think of what else is hard), no glasses obscuring them,  with a tiny frown on his face and such smooth skin that Ryuji wants to feel, wants to kiss, to see soaked in sweat, unclothed, to have nimble fingers working on him, touching him, to know Akira held all that grace even when he isn't the Joker....

When he looks like grace itself when he sits on the bed, staring at Ryuji the way he does.

Once more, there was pain in his chest, and Ryuji had to bit back a whimper as this one nearly brought him to his knees for the second time tonight. He could feel his heart squeezing, but he wasn't sure if it was doing it on its own, or if there was something else.

"Ryuji?" At the sound of his name, Ryuji just smiled.

"Only if you stay in bed with me." He could've worded that much, much more better. Especially after all these thoughts he just had.

Good thing Ryuji wasn't the only one who's embarrassed, as he saw a light pink color dust over Akira's face. _That's so cute._ Another grip on his heart, and once more, Ryuji had to bit his lip.

"....Fine." Akira said, looking away from the blond. Ryuji grinned, even when he heard Morgana make some scoffing noise and is probably rolling his eyes, he didn't care. As Akira scooted over, Ryuji began to lay on the other side, with Akira pulling up the covers for the both of them. They laid on their side, face to face, not making a sound as they stared at each other.

"Night, 'Kira." He didn't mean to say the nickname out loud, but when he saw Akira's smile, he's glad he did.

"Night, Ryu." At that, Ryuji couldn't help but blush, feeling his heart skip a beat, and then wincing when yet _another_ pain sensation gripped his heart. Akira obviously missed his distress as he closed his eyes, and Ryuji couldn't help but lay there, staring.

"Get some sleep too, Ryuji." Morgana said from his side of the couch. Ryuji wanted to tell the cat to eff off, but he couldn't. He was too busy staring in a trance of Akira, noting his pretty eyelashes and how they rest against the lower part of the eyelid. How his hair fell even more in his face, now that he was resting on the bed. He felt the urge to reach out and mess with it, to play with it, but he knew he couldn't. He wasn't sure how fast asleep Akira was (with Ryuji, he usually falls asleep as soon as his head hit the pillow, but seeing how he was sharing a bed with his crush, that idea went out the window), but he didn't want to disturb him. Not when he looks so peaceful sleeping.

Ryuji wince as he felt the pain get worse.

_I hope this goes away soon._

He then closed his eyes and went to sleep.

* * *

_He was watching everything in first person view, or so it felt._

_He watched as Akira continued to stare after Ann even when she jumped into the car with Kamoshida, a sense of longing in his eyes. He watched as Akira stared at Ann in amazement when she got her first persona, a tiny blush coming across his face the longer he did. He watched as Akira had gotten protective over her, just before they met Yusuke. He watched him get close to her, avoiding him and his hang outs, watched him have her on his team, always by his side, watched, watched, watched....._

_He can hear her giggles, can see her blushing, smiling at him like he's the only one she ever wanted, and him, enjoying every minute spent with Ann, using lines to impress her, buying her gifts to romance her...._

_They would make a cute couple._

_**It hurts, doesn't it?** A voice, light and airy, with a hint of sadistic teasing, said. **Here you are, longing, wishing, praying, doing everything you can....for him....yet he doesn't seem to notice you. He treats that girl better than he ever does with you. Does he not see the devotion you have for him? Does he not see how much you want him as yours? And vice versa? Does he not know how much you're craving for him, want to be more than best friends?**_

_Suddenly, something started to wrap around him, causing him to be unable to move. A little panic, he looked around and saw green vines with thorns had caged him in, his arms sticking out from the cage. He could hear himself whimpering just as another green vine with thorns started to grow from underneath his feet, wrapping around his leg, the thorns pushed inwards as to poke him through the cloth of his pants, and when he tried to move, he felt the thorns dig deeper, pressing, threatening. Another started to grow and did the same with his other leg, this time, intentionally digging into his leg, causing him to cry out._

_**No. He doesn't see.** The same airy, sickening sweet, voice said. _

_Soon, more and more vines started to grow out from underneath him, the thorns pricking at his skin, causing him to bleed. He was bleeding everywhere; his legs, his waist, his arms, his stomach, and even his forehead wasn't protected. He whimpered and whine, eyes becoming wet with tears._

_**No, he'll never see how much he means to you.** _

_Suddenly, a much larger vine grew a couple of inches away from him, a very large thorn growing from the tip of it and pointing straight at Ryuji's heart. He could feel his fear double as he felt something drop inside his stomach. He hoped it was his heart, in order to spare himself the agony._

_**You'll die before he does.** _

_And then, the thorn rushed at him, its destination clear._

_Ryuji screamed._

* * *

Ryuji woke up with a gasp, sitting up forward.

It almost seem like Deja vu with how he'd woken up, but unlike then, Ryuji didn't end up throwing up. For a moment, everything was silent. Ryuji could not hear anything over the sound of his own heart beating, and before he could calm himself, he felt something wrap around him. Immediately, he jolted away from the touch, and ended up landing on the floor with a harsh thump, startling Akira and Morgana awake.

"Ryuji?" Akira said, looking over at the side of the bed.

"Idiot." Morgana sighed. "Honestly though, it was time for you guys to wake up anyway. You can borrow some of Akira's clothes, Ryuji."

Meanwhile, Ryuji sat on the floor in a daze, mind a little fuzzy after the nightmare he had. Akira frowned in concern.

"Are you okay?" He asked. Ryuji slowly looked back at Akira, as if he never seen him before, before nodding. This only cause Akira greater concern and he helped Ryuji get back on his feet. "Are you sure? You look like you've seen a ghost or something," That's when Akira's eyes narrowed. "Are you still feeling the affects of the witch?"

That's when Ryuji blinked back to reality and shook his head.

"A little bit, but I'm sure I'll be alright," That's when he looked at the clock. "Right. We have school. Bathhouse?" He asked, and he tried not to think about the fact that he'll be alone with Akira inside the bathhouse, naked.

Akira said nothing, but allow Ryuji to follow as they made their way to the bathhouse to get ready for school. When that was over, they had met up with their friends to Shujin Academy.

"Well, look at you in the correct uniform!" Ann teased, elbowing Ryuji in the ribs.

It shouldn't have hurt. Granted, Ann was strong and her punches did have a bit of a sting, but that didn't mean her elbowing Ryuji in the ribs should've made him feel like dying. Hot, spiky, pain raced up and down his spine, and Ryuji tried not to scream.

Maybe it was just him, but it feels like the pain had gotten worse since yesterday. First his chest, and now his back? What was going on?

"I do believe we should call this a miracle." Makoto teased, grinning a little.

"I think it's cute. He looks just like Akira in that get up!" Haru said, giggling when she caught the sight of Akira and Ryuji blushing.

"Yeah, if Akira was blond, has short hair, and brown eyes." Ann said. Before anyone else could say anything, Morgana interrupted them.

"Uh, guys? School, remember?"

The group started to walk towards the building when Ryuji, who was behind them, paused, eyes wide. Immediately, he started to shoot ahead, going straight to the boy's bathroom, and ending up coughing out some more blood. His hands were starting to shake as he realized that whatever was wrong with him, it wasn't going away quickly.    


	3. Chapter 3

Ryuji couldn't focus. Not when he has this..... _thing_ inside him. A thing that had followed him to the real world, causing him real injuries, and Ryuji might be going a little hysteric anytime he was spewing out blood. Truthfully, he was afraid. Whatever that witch did to him, it was doing a fantastic job of keeping Ryuji on edge.

"Sakamoto!"

Ryuji looked up when he heard his name called by the teacher. "Care to tell me the answer to the question: Which of the seven erotes meant longing desire?"

"Uh...." Ryuji scratched his head. Granted, Ryuji barely knew anything about mythology and where they came from, but the question seemed easy enough to answer. "Panthos?"

The students around him started to giggle, much to his embarrassment. Meanwhile, his teacher rolled her eyes.

"I think you meant Pothos. Either way, you are correct. Of the seven deities, Pothos is an erote meant to represent a longing or a desire for something that is absent. He is also the brother to Himeros and Eros, though in some mythologies, he is displayed as the son of Eros. Often times people confused Pothos with Himeros - who also means desire, but of the burning, irrational kind. He is also the representative of unrequited love, or love that is completely one-sided to sum it up." She said, turning back to the board. "There are many kinds of love, and each one is talked about during the Greek period. For today, we'll start with the most common deity - Pothos."

After that, Ryuji began to tune her out, though what she'd said stuck to his mind.

Unrequited love. One-sided love. A.K.A the worst kind of feeling there is.

Ryuji flinched when he felt the thing inside him tighten around his heart again, the urge to cough tickling the back of his throat, but the blond refused. He doubted anyone in class would care about him, they'll probably be very happy to know something's wrong with Ryuji, but the rebellious teen wasn't going to give them the satisfaction of seeing him suffer. Not after everything he's already been through.

Instead, he placed his head down on his desk, burying it in his arms, and closed his eyes.

Before he knew it, he drifted off to sleep.

* * *

"-Moto? Sakamoto! Wake up!"

Ryuji blinked his eyes, vision blurry, until he started to rub them to get them to clear. Looking around, he realized that he was only one still in class, with the teacher frowning at him.

"You fell asleep," She said, giving Ryuji a stink eye. "Hurry up before you're late to your next class."

"....Sorry." Ryuji muttered, hurrying up and grabbing his things. Just before he walked out the door, however, the teacher called out.

"You alright? You look a little pale." She asked. Ryuji paused in his walking, surprised that someone other than his friends cared about him, before frowning.

"I'm fine. Don't worry about me," Under his breath, he muttered. "S'not like you guys ever cared about me anyway." Then he started to walk before the teacher could say anything, the urge to cough getting harder to ignore, until he eventually came to a trashcan in hall and coughed there, feeling blood pouring out of his mouth.

"Sakamoto?" Ryuji paused in his cough/vomiting, looking up to see Mishima frowning at him. "You okay? You look a little sick."

"I'm good, Mishima, just...a little under the weather." He said, standing straight and wincing when he felt pain in the center of his back, on the spine. Mishima continued to look the delinquent, unsure if to believe him.

"If you say so. Hey, are you guys doing anything today? I still have some request to send Akira-senpai that I think you guys might want to check out." Mishima asked, and Ryuji had to wince at the look - as well as the pain in his body. This kid was so cute, trying his best to help them out, and if Ryuji didn't think Akira and Ann were an item (soon-to-be, anyway, once they got over themselves), and if Akira swung that way, Mishima _might_ have a shot.

After all, Mishima wasn't as sly as he think he is - Ryuji knew he had a crush on the Phantom Thieves leader.

Ryuji didn't know whether to cry, laugh, be angry, or do all three.

"You'll have to ask Akira. He usually makes all the plans." He said, shrugging his shoulders. Mishima frowned, looking a bit disappointed.

"Oh." Ryuji ruffled his hair with a grin, laughing when Mishima started to fuss.

"Don't worry. If there's something really important to need us to check out, just say the word and I'm sure Akira would agree. If not, I'll back you 100% dude." Ryuji grinned, and when he saw Mishima's face flush, he wondered what's gotten him embarrassed so much.

"Right. Thanks, Ryuji." With that, Mishima walk away. It took Ryuji a second or so to catch on to the fact that Mishima said his first name since knowing each other.

* * *

**AK:** _Mishima said you were sick. Is that true?_

**AT:** _What?? That's true?! Ryuji, why didn't you say anything!_

**YK:** _Was this after the Mementos? I can't seem to recall you being sick before then._

**FS:** _I knew it! I knew something was wrong!_

**HO:** _Oh no! Get some rest, Ryuji-kun! ( ` o ` ) !_

**MN:** _Ryuji, you should have told us you were not feeling well._

Ryuji couldn't help but roll his eyes at the text messages.

**RS:** _Guys, I'm fine. I just told him that so he didn't have to worry._

**AK:** _He said he found you bending over a trashcan, vomiting. I don't know if I shouldn't be worried._

**RS:** _Even so, it doesn't mean anything. For all we know, it could be a common cold._

**FS:** _For all YOU know, it could be something much more worse than a cold._

**RS:** _Futaba please. I said I'm fine._

**MN:** _We're just worried, Ryuji. After what happen, and what the witch said, we want to make sure you're okay._

 **RS:** _I appreciate that, Makoto, I do, but as I've stated, I'm fine._

 **RS:** _If it makes you feel any better, I'll allow you guys to do a check up just to make sure nothing's wrong._

 **YK:** _That would be for the best._

 **FS:** _Agreed._

 **AK:** _Alright._

 **AT:** _You better not be hiding anything from us, Sakamoto!_

 **MN:** _I am content with that._

**HO:** _( ^ ^ ) /_

And Ryuji closed his phone after that, a deep frown coming across his face.

Makoto and Yusuke were right about the attack. Before the Mementos, he had been fine. Now he wasn't.

He didn't have to think about it - he made his way over to the Subway, preparing to go to the Mementos himself, in search for the one responsible for this.       

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not gonna lie - in my head, I always end up calling "Pothos" Panthos for some reason xD


	4. Chapter 4

There were times Ryuji had gone down to the Mementos by himself before. Usually, when he needed to clear his head or get some practice in, but he never went in searching for a particular shadow, especially ones he knew he couldn't beat, at least not by himself.

Of course there's always the first time for everything.

As soon as the world pulse and transformed, feeling the cool familiar leather jacket of his uniform and the heavy weight of his mask, Ryuji shivered, clenching at his chest. It would appear that whatever was inside him was also vulnerable to the elements, specifically, to the Mementos itself. It make sense, since that's where this thing came from anyway.

Shaking his head, Ryuji trudge forward, not for the first time wondering where and how he can come across the witch. If she was any lower than the levels they already been through, Ryuji might be chasing a lost cost; the deeper they got into the Mementos, the harder the fight, and no matter how brave Ryuji could be, there was no way he'll defeat a horde of tough shadows by himself. Not without getting injured at least, and he really didn't want to explain to his friends why he was badly beaten, didn't want to see Akira's worried face.

At the mere thought, a tight hold squeezed his heart, poking, and Ryuji flinched. It literally felt like a needle was piercing him, threatening, and once more he began to cough, a small portion of blood flying from his mouth.

"Well, well. Didn't think you would come back so soon." Came a disoriented voice, causing Ryuji to tense and look up. He immediately started to back up when he realized who it was.

"You-" The witch smiled, giggling.

"Me." She said, shrugging her shoulders. Looking at the Thief, she continued. "I see my curse is working well. Although, I'm a bit surprised at how fast it's gotten to you - you must've held that love in for a really, really long time!" She grinned again. Ryuji narrowed his eyes.

"What did you do to me?" He asked.

"Hmm? A simple witch's curse, that's all. It's not my strongest attack, but it is my most devastating, as you can see." The witch said. Ryuji gritted his teeth.

"B-but if that was the case, the effects should've worn off by now! Why can I still feel it?" He asked, glaring at the shadow. The witch giggled.

"Silly! It's because it's permanent! At least, from the way I made it to look. There is a way to get rid of it, but I'm not going to tell you! Where's the fun in that?!" She said, still with a happy smile on her face. Ryuji could hear Captain Kidd's growl echoing in his head. The witch titled her head in curiosity. "Was that your Persona? My, he seems nice!"

"Shut up. You don't have to tell me how to get rid of it if I defeat you!" Because that's how it works, right? A curse can only be defeated if the person who did it is vanquish. That's what the fairytales told Ryuji, so maybe it works this way too.

This logic was dashed when the witch smirked at him.

"You _can_ defeat me, but there's no guarantee that it'll work. I could just make it worse for you, or I might not remove it at all. Now, wouldn't that be a shame? You came in here with hopes that if you defeat me, it'll stop the curse, but in doing so, you've accidentally set yourself up for failure. There'll be no way for you to break or even know about the curse if I'm gone." She said, the smirk on her face widen by the second. "I never said I was a nice witch, Mr. Skull. Can I call you that?"

"I figured you weren't when you attacked us." Ryuji muttered, glaring at the shadow. Said shadow smirk.

"But I'm not all bad, you see. I knew you were searching for me, so I came and sort you out. Aren't I nice?" She said. When Ryuji didn't say anything else, just keeping glaring at her, the witch shrugged. "Tough crowd. Though, I suppose it'll be worth your interest to tell you what you've got to lose, isn't it? Let's see....if the curse is not removed - and you have a time limit by the way - you'll eventually end up dead. And your Persona belongs to me."

Ryuji eyes went wide.

"W-What? You can't just _steal_ my Persona!" Ryuji said. The witch pouted.

"Why not? You and the rest of your kind steals people's treasures all the time. Since you guys have nothing of worth for me to....borrow, your Personas are the closest things I can get."

"B-but Captain Kidd is my other half. You steal him, and-"

"I'll basically be stealing a part of you. I know! It's exciting, isn't it?" The witch giggled, before turning to Ryuji with a serious look on her face. "Let's be fair, Mr. Skull. I wasn't targeting you in the first place; I wanted the leader. He seemed strong, and he has lots of Personas - specifically, the winged one."

 _Arsene._ Captain Kidd growled.

"That's his name? How cute!" The witch giggled. "Yes, him. I like him a lot, and he was the Persona I had wanted the moment I was able to get your leader under my curse," She titled her head. "I never expected you to take the hit. But now I can see why." The witch's grin started to grow again. "I can see it all so very clearly. I wonder, Mr. Skull, have you heard of the folktale, the Hanahaki Disease?"

"...Sound familiar." Ryuji mumbled out. "Didn't people die from that?"

"People die from a lot of things, Mr. Skull. The Hanahaki Disease is no different." The witch sighed. "Though, suppose it's a little different with how you die. Flowers, unrequited love....all that jazz." She said, and when Ryuji's eyes widen at the sudden information, she knew he knew.

"No...."

She grinned.

"Yes, Mr. Skull. You are now the victim of the Hanahaki Disease."    


End file.
